With the G2, it seems like LG took a lot of cues from its Korean counterpart and built what many called a Galaxy S4 clone. It's large, made of lots of plastic, shaped similarly and is jam-packed with more features than a single person can handle.

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Nokia Treasure Tag and MD-12 wireless speaker accessories for smartphones, Microsoft has unveiled a revolutionary new mobile accessory as prototype. Built in collaboration with acclaimed designer Adrien Sauvage, the accessory are a pair of trousers that supports wireless charging for Lumia handsets.

The blog post also states how the Microsoft team and Sauvage incorporated the Nokia DC-50 wireless charging plate into the trousers. "The technology (known as inductive charging) comes from the new Nokia DC-50 wireless charging plate for Lumia smartphones. These smart trousers are the perfect way to keep your battery full and yourself in style," states the blog.

Microsoft said that the wireless charging trousers will be available for pre-order via Amazon soon. It however remains a question as to what actually powers the wireless charging plate. Sauvage's collaboration with Nokia is a part of the 'Modern Man' event set for July 11 at Toronto, Canada.

"We have a proud history of working within fashion, having previously collaborated with Bruce Weber and David Bailey, as well as recent partnerships at New York and London Fashion Week. Continuing this theme, we are excited to work alongside a talented designer such as A. Sauvage. As well as having the vision to co-create these amazing wireless charging trousers, his style complements the cutting-edge design of the new Lumia 930 smartphone perfectly," stated Adam Johnson, Marketing Director for Microsoft Mobile (UK and Ireland).

Nokia introduced its Treasure Tag and MD-12 wireless speaker accessories last month for the Indian market. Both the Nokia MD-12 portable wireless speaker and Treasure Tag pair with Nokia smartphones via Bluetooth or NFC.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

The new iPhone could be one of the most pivotal devices in the Cupertino brand's history - with the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C simple updates to previous models, there's a lot of pressure heaped on the iPhone 6.
As per usual, the internet is awash with rumor, speculation and downright lies over this next-generation handset, which is why we spend our time trawling through each nugget of info, debating its merits and curating it into this easy-to-read hub for all things iPhone 6.
According to a survey of 4109 US consumers the iPhone 6 is the most anticipated Apple smartphone ever, with interest easily outstripping that of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5.
We've already been given a small sneak peak at what Apple may have in store for us on the iPhone 6 thanks to the announcement of iOS 8 at WWDC - from a bigger screen and camera to health monitoring and more storage.

What iOS 8 tells us about the iPhone 6

Some of you might have been expecting the iPhone 6 to have debuted in 2013, but given the iPhone's history - from the 3G onwards, there's always been a half-step S model before the next numbered iPhone - we were never going to get the 6 until 2014. In fact, it will technically be the iPhone 8 when it finally launches... but hey, who's counting these days?
One thing is for sure, with the Samsung Galaxy S5, Sony Xperia Z2 and HTC One M8 now out in wild, Apple needs to be on its game with the new iPhone - and many believe a bigger screen is simply a must.
Cut to the chase

What is it? A major revision of the iPhone including entire design
When is it out? September 2014 seems most likely
What will it cost? Expect premium pricing for a premium smartphone
Latest update: Taiwanese driving and movie star Jimmy Lin has posted some images to social network Weibo apparently showing off the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 alongside the iPhone 5S - skip to page 2 to take a look.

iPhone 6 release date

The iPhone 6 release date will be in 2014 and it's looking increasingly likely that we'll see it in September, which would fit in nicely with the rollout of the newly announced iOS 8.
Apple has launched the last few iPhones at a special event in September, so the smart money has always been on September 2014 for the iPhone 6's arrival.
Not to mention the fact that according to ifun.de Apple is restricting holidays during September for employees at German Apple Stores, which strongly suggests a new hardware launch then.

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PAGE 1 OF 3Release date, price and display
iPhone 6 release date, news and rumorsIs an even bigger iPhone on the way?
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Samsung Galaxy Note 4 release date, news and rumors
iPad Pro release date, news and rumors
Everything you need to know about iOS 8
The new iPhone could be one of the most pivotal devices in the Cupertino brand's history - with the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C simple updates to previous models, there's a lot of pressure heaped on the iPhone 6.
As per usual, the internet is awash with rumor, speculation and downright lies over this next-generation handset, which is why we spend our time trawling through each nugget of info, debating its merits and curating it into this easy-to-read hub for all things iPhone 6.
According to a survey of 4109 US consumers the iPhone 6 is the most anticipated Apple smartphone ever, with interest easily outstripping that of the iPhone 5S and iPhone 5.
We've already been given a small sneak peak at what Apple may have in store for us on the iPhone 6 thanks to the announcement of iOS 8 at WWDC - from a bigger screen and camera to health monitoring and more storage.

What iOS 8 tells us about the iPhone 6

Some of you might have been expecting the iPhone 6 to have debuted in 2013, but given the iPhone's history - from the 3G onwards, there's always been a half-step S model before the next numbered iPhone - we were never going to get the 6 until 2014. In fact, it will technically be the iPhone 8 when it finally launches... but hey, who's counting these days?
One thing is for sure, with the Samsung Galaxy S5, Sony Xperia Z2 and HTC One M8 now out in wild, Apple needs to be on its game with the new iPhone - and many believe a bigger screen is simply a must.
Cut to the chase

What is it? A major revision of the iPhone including entire design
When is it out? September 2014 seems most likely
What will it cost? Expect premium pricing for a premium smartphone
Latest update: Taiwanese driving and movie star Jimmy Lin has posted some images to social network Weibo apparently showing off the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 alongside the iPhone 5S - skip to page 2 to take a look.

iPhone 6 release date

The iPhone 6 release date will be in 2014 and it's looking increasingly likely that we'll see it in September, which would fit in nicely with the rollout of the newly announced iOS 8.
Apple has launched the last few iPhones at a special event in September, so the smart money has always been on September 2014 for the iPhone 6's arrival.
Not to mention the fact that according to ifun.de Apple is restricting holidays during September for employees at German Apple Stores, which strongly suggests a new hardware launch then.
Your next smartphone
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HTC One M8 | Sony Xperia Z2 | Samsung Galaxy S5 | LG G3
All the news and secrets on 2014's forthcoming blockbusters to info on the best that's already here, we'll arm you with all the info you'll need to get your perfect smartphone.
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It's looking increasingly likely that we'll see more than one Apple handset this year though. KGI's analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has thrown his hat into the ring and seems to think a duo of new iPhones will be released, with a 4.7-inch iPhone coming out towards the end of the third quarter and a 5.5-inch iPhablet hitting the market late in the fourth quarter.
Suggestions of both sizes arriving September could also hold water, though we've also heard that Apple has had trouble finding appropriate batteries for the 5.5-inch device and that as a result it might even slip into next year.
After trawling through all the iPhone 6 rumors we kicked our render machine into gear and came up with a concept of what we'd like Apple's eighth generation flagship smartphone to look like.
Check out our creation in the video below.

iPhone 6 price

There's one thing we can be sure about when it comes to the iPhone 6 - it won't be cheap.
Apple's legacy is a long line of premium devices sporting premium price tags and you can expect that trend to continue with the iPhone 6.
One analyst even goes as far as predicting that Apple will hike up the price of the iPhone 6, possibly by as much as $100 (around £60, AU$110). With a larger screen, new glass covering the front and possibly even a new, more impressive, material used in construction, we can see the price being hiked.
We'd be surprised is the mooted 4.7-inch iPhone 6 would get such a massive price bump, as it needs to stay competitive, but the hike does make sense if Apple launches a larger, phablet sized iPhone.
Bigger screen(s)?

One of the most enduring rumors about the iPhone 6 is that it will have a bigger screen than the iPhone 5S.
Apple has even acknowledged that consumers want a larger screen after an internal slide was revealed in its court battle with Samsung entitled "Consumers want what we don't have."
According to Business Insider, of the many iPhone 6 prototypes Apple has made, one has a giant Retina+ IGZO display and a "new form factor with no home button. Gesture control is also possibly included." It will surely include Apple's new Touch ID fingerprint tech though?
The Retina+ Sharp IGZO display would have a 1080p Full HD resolution. However we're not convinced that the prototype will make it to market. Ditching the home button would be a big change and no other rumors point in that direction.
It has however been widely reported that Apple could introduce two handset sizes as it seeks to compete with the plethora of Android devices now on the market - with both being a lot thinner thanks to big improvements in LED backlight technology to reduce the thickness.
With everything we've seen so far we reckon there will almost certainly be two screen sizes and resolutions, as mentioned above.

There's no single way to make a great smartphone, and these two phones are a great example of that. One is small (at least by today's standards), with an equally small screen, a premium build, and hardware and software both made by the same company. The other is much bigger, with a spacious screen, plastic finish, and a boatload of eye-catching features.So which do you go with? Well, I don't believe that there's going to be one universal answer for everyone, so let's take a closer look at what each phone brings to the table, and try to help you to find the phone that works better for you.

Pick each phone up, and you'll immediately see a difference. The Galaxy S5 is 15 percent longer, 24 percent wider, and 7 percent thicker than the iPhone 5s. What that translates to, at least in my hands, is a phone that slides right into the meat of the palm (iPhone) vs. one that I have to stretch my fingers a little to get a good grip around (Galaxy).

Apple is a design-driven company, and I think it shows in the iPhone 5s. Its appearance is starting to look pretty familiar these days (externally, it's almost identical to its predecessor, the iPhone 5). But I think it feels like a higher-end phone than the GS5. You can chalk a lot of that up to the Galaxy S5's faux leather (plastic) finish – with dimples. And the edge of the GS5, which has a metallic look? Well, it's actually made of plastic too.

There's nothing wrong with smartphone-makers slapping plastic chassis onto their devices. But if you're looking for the more premium feel, the iPhone wins this showdown hands-down. The iPhone looks like it was chiseled and crafted from a piece of aluminum, with chamfered edges and a jeweler's attention to detail. And, go figure, it was. The Galaxy S5, from a distance, looks like it might have been made of leather and stainless steel. But when you look closer, you realize that it's all just plastic.

If you can get past the whole looks like one thing, is actually another aspect to the Galaxy S5, then I think its pleather finish is actually pretty comfortable in hand. The slightly soft-touch finish helps to lessen the blow of having to hold such a huge device.

Big phones like the GS5 are now the de facto industry standard, but there's a place for smaller, more compact devices like the iPhone. For starters, it's extremely light (at 112 g, it's 23 percent lighter than the Galaxy). It's also a cinch to use with one hand, and you barely notice it when it's in your pocket.

f Apple's next flagship iPhone has a 4.7-in screen, as Apple's leaky supply chain is suggesting, then I hope the company also keeps a 4-in iPhone around. If Apple does go all-in on big iPhones, then the 5s might be the last terrific smartphone with a 4-in or smaller screen. It's no secret that the tech industry often leans towards "me-too" sameness, but why can't we have great smartphones in all sizes? I see the positives in 4-in phones, 5-in phones, and even larger phablets.

The biggest plus that large phones give you is, of course, plenty of screen real estate. The Galaxy S5's display is big and beautiful. Diagonally, it measures 5.1 inches, with 1,920 x 1,080 resolution. The iPhone's screen is 4 inches, with 1,136 x 640 resolution. To put that in perspective, the iPhone only gives you 62 percent as much screen as the GS5. It also only gives you 35 percent as many pixels (though I don't think that sharpness difference is nearly as noticeable as the size difference). If you're on a mission for maximum screen and maximum crispness, then your choice is clear.

Both phones have great cameras. The GS5 takes shots in a higher resolution (16 MP to the iPhone's 8 MP), which can help if you're blowing up shots to enormous proportions. But it also has one big Achilles' heel. When you fire up the Galaxy S5's camera from the lock screen, it takes a good five or six seconds before it's ready to snap a shot. On the iPhone, I can jump from lock screen to taking a picture in about 2.5 seconds. If you have to wait over twice as long as competing phones to use the Galaxy S5's camera, well, that's a big strike against it.

The iPhone's camera has a dual-LED flash. What this means is that your flash photography shots are going to look more colorful and balanced (less washed out). The Galaxy S5's camera doesn't have that feature, but I suspect that it's using some software-based processing to try to give its flash shots a similar result (though I still think the iPhone's flash photography looks superior).

You might have seen some Samsung commercials that advertise a blurred-background photography feature, where you can change your point of focus, on the Galaxy S5. The big drawback to the feature, though, is that your subject has to be very close to the camera. If you want a portrait of someone with a blurred background, then you'll have to hold your Galaxy S5 within 1.5 feet (0.46 m) of your subject's face – with the background at least 3x as far away. It's still a nice feature to have (and the iPhone doesn't have an equivalent shooting mode), but that distance requirement is the kind of detail that Samsung is going to gloss over in its ads.

If you asked me what the Galaxy S5's killer feature is, I'd go with its water resistance. In the last couple of years, several OEMs have made water-resistant phones (most notably, Sony), but we've never seen a phone as high-profile as the Galaxy S5 having the feature onboard. And it's a terrific feature to have.

The GS5 is rated IP67, which means it passed a test where it soaked in 1 meter (3.3 ft) of water for 30 minutes. So you can drop your phone in the sink or toilet, rinse it off when it's dirty, or even tweet from the bathtub. Just make sure its battery and charging covers are sealed shut, and you won't have anything to worry about. The iPhone 5s can't do that.

The iPhone 5s' killer feature is its Touch ID fingerprint sensor. Biometric sensors are all the rage these days, and I'd say Apple's Touch ID is the best you'll find in a smartphone. The GS5 actually has a fingerprint sensor in its home button as well, but it's a swipe-based scanner. On the iPhone, you merely rest your finger on the home button for a very brief moment.

Both sensors are good, but I find the iPhone's to be quicker and easier to use. You can also scan your print from any angle on the iPhone, while you'll need to swipe your finger from the same general direction every time you use it on the GS5.

So what do you do with a fingerprint sensor? Well, the biggest thing right now is using it as a passcode. Set up fingerprint security, choose a secure passcode, and you'll be able to skip the code and unlock the phone with your finger. Anyone else will be shut out.

The iPhone's Touch ID also lets you use your print to authorize iTunes and App Store purchases. Samsung's has a few extra tricks up its sleeve: you can swipe your print to login to PayPal, and it's also integrated with a few third-party apps

Thursday, June 12, 2014

A device with the new Firefox OS is presented at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, on February 24, 2014

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$25? For a smartphone? Sounds crazy, right? Actually, not so much.

Mozilla is best known for its desktop browser, Firefox. But it also has a mobile operating system, Firefox OS, that gets so little attention you might think the company was trying to keep it a secret. (To see what it looks like, check out this Fortune story.)

Mozilla’s big problem in getting people to use Firefox OS is that if you’re an Android or Apple iOS user enjoying top-notch hardware and the myriad apps available for either system, why would you ever want to switch to an upstart, unproven OS with few developers working on cool new software? You wouldn’t. And Firefox OS’ competitors already dominate the existing smartphone market—globally, in the last quarter of 2013, Android OS had 78% of smartphone users, Apple’s iOS had 18% and the rest was split between BlackBerry, Windows Phone and various small-fry operations.

So if people who already have a smartphone won’t switch to Firefox OS, how could Mozilla possibly get a bigger slice of the mobile OS pie? Simple: Create new smartphone owners.

The $25 Mozilla smartphone—packed with Firefox OS, of course—will be sold in emerging markets like India and Indonesia, the Journal reports. Old-school “feature phones” still dominate in those countries because they’re ultra-cheap devices in countries where a few dollars can make the difference between poverty and sustainability. Mozilla’s bet is this: Bring smartphone prices in emerging markets down to $25, where they can compete on cost with feature phones, and people will jump at the chance to upgrade. And when they do, boom, a bunch of people are suddenly using Firefox OS, finally making it a relevant player in the global mobile OS wars.

Even if Mozilla breaks even or takes a loss on the hardware, it could eventually turn some kind of a profit on software, a model used by Amazon’s Kindle and most gaming consoles. And there are good reasons to root for Mozilla’s $25 smartphone gambit: If it’s successful, it has the potential to ignite a new wave of software entrepreneurship in emerging markets, where a comparatively small number of developers have mostly been focused on low-tech—but still impressive—apps based on SMS and WAPP, two technologies largely considered outdated in the U.S. but still widely used in many countries abroad.

What could thwart Mozilla’s plans, however, is largely outside of its domain: infrastructure. For smartphones to do smartphone stuff, they need a mobile data connection. India and Indonesia have both been taking pains to improve their respective mobile broadband infrastructures—and there’s clear demand for it in both countries—but both countries have plenty more to do before penetration rates hit satisfactory levels.

If there’s clear customer demand for Mozilla’s $25 smartphone in either country (and elsewhere), that could convince lawmakers and telecom leaders to build more cell towers, lay down fiber and make other capital investments in their networks. But for now, infrastructure remains the weak link in Mozilla’s mission to conquer emerging markets $25 at a time

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Samsung Electronics Co. said Monday it will begin selling a smartphone that runs on its Tizen operating system in the third quarter of this year, advancing the company's plans to reduce dependence on Google's Android software.

Samsung, the world's top smartphone maker by sales volume, said in a statement that the smartphone called Samsung Z will go on sale in Russia first. It said there are plans to sell the phone in other countries but didn't name them.

Tizen is already used in a few Samsung products including a smartwatch but has not been deployed in a mass produced smartphone until now.

Unlike Apple Inc. with its own operating system, Samsung's popular Galaxy smartphones and tablets use Google's open source Android platform, a reliance that prevents Samsung from challenging the dominance of Apple's App Store and Google Play in the lucrative market for smartphone apps.

The Tizen phone will have preinstalled apps and users will have access to additional apps through Tizen Store.

Samsung has been encouraging the development of Tizen apps but the numbers available are likely to be small in comparison to the App Store and Google Play.

HD display, fingerprint sensor

The South Korean company said the Tizen smartphone has a 4.8-inch high definition display, a fingerprint sensor for security and a "slim, angular" design.

It said the operating system will allow users to browse the internet faster and utilize applications more effectively.

Superficially, users may not perceive much difference from the Android operating system because it and Tizen share Linux as the underlying framework.

The Samsung Z will be shown at a Tizen developer conference in San Francisco this week.

Saturday, December 14, 2013

With the G2, it seems like LG took a lot of cues from its Korean counterpart and built what many called a Galaxy S4 clone. It's large, made of lots of plastic, shaped similarly and is jam-packed with more features than a single person can handle.

Display:
A beautiful 5.2" 424 PPI full HD IPS display with the standard RGD matrix which sports 2 million more sub pixels than the galaxy S4's display, it can't get any sharper and as an added bonus, the display is super bright at 450 nits so you can be sure that when ourdoors the displays beauty will not fade. It has great viewing angles so you can watch a video with a buddy and the display has some galaxy-esque features like samsungs smart stay which do exactly what the galaxies do.

This display does an excellent job of balancing the colours to make them look more true to life and the contrast rivals even that of the super amoled screens.

Whats more is that the screen occupies as much of the front of the device as possible, reducing the dimensions of the device to just a little bit bigger than the HTC one which has a display 0.5 inches smaller than it.

Battery Life:

Packing a non removable 3000mAH battery which doesent seem like much when you think that the large display and super fast processor will gobble up in an hour. But do not underestimate this phone as the snapdragon 800 processor has dynamic power sensing which maximises battery life and it really works as I managed 14 hours of heavy use and an entire night on standby and by heavy use I mean benchmarking, gaming, watching videos, more benchmarking and basically way more than the average user does.

The next day, I used it like how an average user would use it- Texting, quite some youtubing, phone calls and some light gaming and I was just blown away. I still had 53% battery left after 8 hours!

The Processor:
Featuring the Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 quad core 2.26GHz processor, the LG G2 is the fastest phone you can find and in all my usage I felt not one second of lag, not one stutter at all. I downloaded an app and as it was installing opened and closed every other app I had but to no avail. This phone just cannot be slowed down.

Not just is it a heavy lifter, its fuel efficient too, just like i said above.

I reckon, there a'int no app that can slow down this here phone!

Design

Diving right into what powers the LG G2 and makes it purr, you'll first notice a 5.2-inch 1920 x 1080 display, which gives us a 424 PPI density. The chipset inside is a Qualcomm MSM8974 Snapdragon 800, with a 2.26GHz quad-core Krait 400. In terms of processing power, it seems that the G2 is in no short supply.

It comes in 16GB and 32GB variants, with 2GB RAM. Connectivity includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, Infrared port and 4G LTE.

Software Features:
Qslide - A small resizeable, transparency adjustable, overlaid application which runs on top of whatever you are doing to multitask. Can be used to open a web browser and calculator at the same time for example, so you can type in numbers as you see them pop up.

Slide aside - A more efficient multitasker than androids stock multitasker which is used by using three fingers to swipe to the left, storing the application in the state you left it, and up to three apps can be slid away at a time. To access them just swipe with three fingers to the right and tap on the app you want to open.

Knock knock - LG lets renders the power button useles in turning off and on the screen because now, with a double tap to the display, the screen pops to life!